Running the line on Saturday in a south London cup match between the league toppers and a team from the division below. Lower league team awarded a penalty and I'm on the goal-line for the normally routine task of making sure the goalie doesn't take more than one step towards the penalty taker. He's supposed to stay on the line but interpetation of the law has been liberalised over the years.
The penalty taker starts his run up. As he approaches, the goalkeeper takes not one, not two, but three giant strides towards the striker and unsurprisingly saves because he is only about 7 yards from the ball when the kick is taken.
I flag and the referee awards a retake. The league toppers are furious with me.
The attackers steps up again and the goalkpeper doers exactly the same, striding forwards between four and five yards in three big strides, saving the ball again.
I'm a little embarrassed and look at the referee. He looks at me. I swallow and flag again. The defending team goes nuts, shouting abuse. None of them are shouting at their goalkeeper as they should be. The goalkeeper is booked.
Up steps the penalty taker for a third time. The goalkeeper does exactly the same, but the only difference is that the ball squirms underneath him and the referee can safely allow the goal even though the goalkeeper has refused to pay any heed to the laws of the game.
The abuse is ripe from the benches on the far side of the field, but hey-hoe, it's water off a duck's back.
It never rains but it pours.
Five minutes later the lower league team gets the offside trap right for the first time in the game. I've flagged thier number 9 for offside 3 times, but this time he skillfully runs across the defence, making a darting break when the ball is played through and catching the defence napping.
He scores to make it 2-0 and the league toppers never recover, eventualy losing 2-1.
Whose fault was all of this? Mine of course.
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